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8 thoughts on “Comments & Feedback”

This work shows us that the gap between the physical world and virtual worlds is becoming ever smaller, while the potential for creating alternate landscapes to explore has never been greater. I am struck by how showing real and virtual landscapes side by side I am lead to think real world can be treated like a game world, with places to explore, obstacles to traverse and unknown events to uncover. With video games often imitating life, this work shows us that life is now imitating video games. I would like to see further examples of how virtual landscapes have influence humans and their understanding on their environment, and if there is any change in collective consciousness due the presence of realistic virtual worlds.

Very interesting work with a lot of detail in all three of the documented eras. They illustrate a very important journey of evolution in computer graphics. It highlights to me the large amount of thought and work that is put into virtual landscapes within video games, perhaps more so in the earlier eras when the level of technology was such a limiting factor. It is especially relevant now that technology is advancing to such a level that virtual environments will soon be able to be presented almost photo-realistically and immersively.

I’ve just finished reading through the 3 books and they’re extremely detailed exploring the history of landscapes in videogames with visuals to reflect on the evolution of the virtual environments through time and how something as little as block colours could still translate on screen to viewers as an environment with basic features such as trees, where as currently, technology has allowed the representation of virtual landscapes to be much more powerful and realistic. Great work and inspirational story of the great wall.

I remember seeing all this back in the portfolio module at Salford! I’ve always found landscape work intriguing since its one of my weaknesses as an artist favouring character building. Looking through the site its pretty easy to navigate, I do prefer the sidebar and using the archives to browse, but I do notice the category buttons up top are missing a bit of content, namely the “photography” and “randomz”.

Content itself though is great, I think the panoramas in general hold a great deal of analytical potential for someone such as I who find that, while basic screenshots can give a decent overview of an artists vision, they are very limited to the dimensions of the screen.In fact I had a conversation with a friend recently on the arguments of wide vs narrow FOV in games, where one might argue that a narrow FOV improves focus on target and makes you play better, but a wide FOV trades that off with an ability to appreciate the surroundings a bit more and gives more immersion. The panoramas are almost like a support to those arguments because it’s like viewing a different world to ones we normally see when we play. This is especially apparent with more whimsical NVEs like in Windwaker, since we see a lot more of the fantasy elements on screen than we normally would and we get to see how well they gel together.

I do also like the photographic research elements. The Blue Lagoon was an interesting read and a great insight to the human psyche. I think its very good to look outside the box and really dig in deep why people are drawn to these environments, Anybody reading might then take a further look into what makes each element of a landscape tick and by extension, have them have a look at their own work, particularly if they are an environment artist themselves. It would be great to see even more of that!

May I suggest though, if you’re continuing research, that you take a look at some recently made NVE’s created in the Unreal 4 engine now that it’s starting to churn out some already impressive looking titles. ARK: Survival Evolved would be a perfect addition to the Modern Era section because it’s a great example over how people like to play in those environments despite a significant portion having to grit their teeth through 15-30fps. Would gamers be as forgiving if the environment was urban, or futuristic? I believe some people are renewing old game environments in the engine as a comparison as well. You likely may have already seen it as an example, but there’s a video of Kakariko village from Zelda. It might just be extra avenues of research to explore, particularly how much technology influences the environment.

What a great piece of work and an introduction to the virtual world.
Looking at the images of Jacobs Well just gave me goose bumps.
Fantastic imagery and the use of colours to bring the landscapes to life –felt like I have just been taken on a journey of some of the wonders of the world that I didn’t know existed. It is admirable how these images have been captured into virtual landscapes, thank you.

This is a wonderful array of research! As a hobbyist concept artist, I can see clearly the mission undertaken to highlight the connection between real world eco systems and those seen in game environments. It’s not just about making sure forests are lush and green and water is blue and sparkly, it’s about making something fit for purpose and believable. The natural flow of sediment, the arching of trees towards the North, weather systems that work in tandem with lighting and tones to create mood, are all influenced by what we see in our own world and beyond. I say this because I share the views made in Virtual Landscapes!

I think if nothing else the body of work helps to convey the sheer depths of research and development that intrinsically informs the beautiful landscapes we see in games today. This is something that we can revere, and will continue to develop until the divide between what is real and what is virtual becomes ever less visible.